Over 40 members of the Graduate Medical Education (GME) Advocacy Coalition, including the AAMC, submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) proposed rule for distributing the 1,000 new GME slots provided in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (CAA, P.L. 116-260).
CMS issued the proposed rule on April 27, which included two alternative options for distributing the new slots [refer to Washington Highlights, April 30]. Alternative 1 would distribute the slots solely based on a hospital’s health professional shortage area score and would remain in place for five years until all slots were distributed. Alternative 2 would utilize all categories defined in the CAA and would only apply for the first year of the distribution, thus giving the CMS more time to work with stakeholders on the methodology. Both options, however, would only grant 1.0 full time equivalent (FTE) per hospital.
The letter urged CMS “to finalize the Alternative 2 methodology in the FY 2022 Inpatient Prospective Payment System (IPPS) proposed rule, with modifications, and increase the number of full time equivalent (FTE) slots awarded per hospital for FY 2023 and all succeeding years.” It continued, “While we recognize that the need for additional GME support far outpaces the 1,000 new GME slots, 1.0 FTE per hospital is simply not practical.”
“We urge CMS to consider our recommendations, and we look forward to continuing to work with you to increase the physician workforce and help patients access the care that they need,” the letter concluded.